The first Thursday of every month, we’re selecting a business or self-help book to review for the following month. And, rest assured—if we’re featuring it—there’s something you oughtta know!

To kick things off, let’s chat about a book I read during my recent trip to Costa Rica: Rework, by Jason Fried and David Heinemeier Hansson. (If you haven’t read it and plan to, SPOILER ALERT.)

WHAT I DIDN’T LOVE SO MUCH:

A few points were super hypocritical.

Should we call it a “plan” or a “path”?

Oh boy - this is the kind of stuff I hate. Right off the bat, Rework attempts to set itself apart from all other business books. “Don’t have a plan!” it yells, controversially. Personally, I'm a major proponent of business plans (so much so, I created a Crafting Your Creative Business Plan e-course! It's good stuff.)

But then it’s all like “a business without a path to profit isn't a business, it's a hobby.” Sounds like a plan to me. Shall we call it a “path” instead? eye roll

FAILING VS. QUITTING

“People automatically associate quitting with failure, but that’s exactly what you should do.”

Again, here’s a bit of hypocrisy. They go on to include an entire section mocking failure:

In my opinion, this reveals more about their insecurity surrounding failure than failure itself. (It’s ok to fail, people!)

Should we focus on ourselves or “pick a fight”?

First, they say:

“If you think a competitor sucks, say so.”

I totally disagree - you do you! You don't need to bring people down to lift yourself up. If you mention a competitor like that, it just shows that you’re threatened by them. Talk to the value you offer (not how another company isn't as “cool” or "new" as you).

Then, they tell us to:

Focus on you instead of they, eh? This completely contradicts their “pick a fight” section, but I couldn’t agree more.

NOW, WHAT REALLY WORKED FOR ME:Their awesome business growth insight!

COMMITMENT STRATEGY NOT AN EXIT STRATEGY

I immediately started to nod my head when I got to this section. THIS. For a business to be successful, you can’t afford to have one foot out the door.

“Think about it this way: If you had to launch your business in two weeks, what would you cut out? Funny how a question like that forces you to focus. You suddenly realize there’s a lot of stuff you don’t need. And what you do need seems obvious. When you impose a deadline, you gain clarity. It’s the best way to get to that gut instinct that tells you, “We don’t need this.”

I totally agree! When I work with clients and we start setting deadlines to our to-dos, it becomes very clear what's a priority and what's not.

GO TO SLEEP!

THANK YOU. The authors discuss how lack of sleep makes you stubborn (i.e. unwilling to pivot), hampers your creativity, and diminishes morale. I get around 7-9 hours of sleep a night and won’t sacrifice that to join the 5am club, ever.

STEALING

I really like this barometer to gauge whether or not you're stealing. Is someone else doing the bulk of the work? And if you haven’t read Steal Like an Artist yet, you’ll want to do that.

When I started my coaching business, I had another coach say "I want to host where you're hosting" and "I want to start doing tips like you." I also had people wanting me to coach them on how to be a coach.

My first reaction was: “Hey now, are they trying to steal my gig?” But then I realized, “Guess what? They can’t imitate my personality or my innate way of working with people.” No longer a threat!

Instead, I view these experiences as opportunities. How can I help someone else find their own way?

HIRING

“Hire managers of one. Managers of one are people who come up with their own goals and execute them. They don’t need heavy direction. They don’t need daily check-ins. They do what a manager would do–set the tone, assign items, determine what needs to get done, etc.—but they do it by themselves and for themselves.”

This is what I love: hire a manager over an administrator. This is what small businesses need more than anything!

How do you spot a manager of one? The authors recommend checking their background to see if they’ve ever “run something on their own” or “launched some kind of project.”

*Special credit: Hire a great writer.

INSPIRATION IS PERISHABLE“Inspiration is a magical thing, a productivity multiplier, a motivator. But it won’t wait for you. Inspiration is a now thing. If it grabs you, grab it right back and put it to work.”

YAS TO THIS 10000%. I always try to act on things when I have the energy to do it and trust that I'll find the energy to do the other things in my life, too.

Rating:3.5/5

Recommendation:I’d recommend this as snackable content for startups to small businesses.

Now for your thoughts! If you’ve read Rework, what would you rate it? Do you agree or disagree with anything the book had to say?